International press on Armenia’s withdrawal from CSTO and integration with EU

Olesya Vardanyan, senior analyst in the South Caucasus at the International Crisis Group, told Kommersant that Nikol Pashinyan has decided to make a turn to the West, but this is not a process that will be accompanied by jerky movements to the detriment of Armenia.

“EU integration is a long process that often takes many years and requires consensus both in the EU and in Yerevan. For now, Armenia is off the EU agenda, which does not mean that there will be no mutual programs,” the expert noted.

Deutsche Welle said in a report that for a long time, Armenia had to rely on Russia as a strategic partner that could protect it from Azerbaijan and Turkey.

“In Yerevan, they believe that the Kremlin could have come to the aid of Armenia, but failed to do that. Amid all of this, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced that his country is going to withdraw from the CSTO. The Russian military base in Gyumri, Armenia is also bringing up questions,” the news service said.